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Day 248 of 280 · 35 weeks + 3 days

Under the ribs

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 6 sources · Plain-text version

Thirty-five weeks and three days. Sore ribs are usually a foot in the wrong place. Today you learn the one kind of rib pain that's a phone call, not a stretch.

Size this week
about the size of a honeydew melon
Length this week
around 46.2 cm from head to heel
A woman with a full bump in a loose linen dress standing at a sunny window, one hand resting on the side of her ribs, stretching gently, a calm half-smile, late morning light.

Thirty-five weeks and three days. If a foot has taken up residence under your ribs, you're in good company. Most rib aches this late are exactly that. Today's note is about telling that kind apart from the kind that needs a call.

Your baby

A single honeydew melon on a plain pale wooden table, soft window light.

Around now your baby is around 46.2cm long from head to heel, about the size of a honeydew melon (NHS). The womb is crowded, so their movement is more limited, but the NHS says it should still feel as strong and regular as before (NHS). Less room to swing, same amount of effort.

Your body

Sore ribs are often caused by the baby kicking, the NHS says, but severe pain, or pain under the ribs, should be checked for pre-eclampsia (NHS). Preeclampsia is high blood pressure with signs of liver or kidney damage, starting after the 20th week of pregnancy, and it occurs in 3% to 7% of all pregnancies (MedlinePlus).

The NHS groups three signs together for urgent help: splitting headaches, vision problems, and pain below the ribs (NHS). Any one of them on its own is enough to call. MedlinePlus is just as plain: contact your provider if you have symptoms of preeclampsia, during pregnancy or after delivery (MedlinePlus).

Try today

  1. The under-rib rule

    Time: 5 minutes

    1. Learn the difference in one sentence: a kick comes and goes; pain that stays under the ribs is a call (NHS).

    2. Next time your ribs ache, notice whether it moved with the baby and eased when they did.

    3. If it's severe, constant, or sits just under your ribs, call your provider or labor and delivery right away, rather than waiting to see if it settles (NHS).

    4. Add "pain under the ribs, headache, vision" to the call card on the fridge (NHS).

    Make it work:

    Tell your partner the rule too. Pain like this can make it hard to think clearly about whether to call, and a second person can make the call for you.

Watch for

  • Normal

    an ache where a foot keeps pushing (NHS).

    Call your provider right away

    for severe pain, or pain under the ribs that stays (NHS).

  • Normal

    an occasional headache, which is common in pregnancy (MedlinePlus).

    Call your provider

    if a headache gets worse or doesn't go away with rest and acetaminophen, especially near the end of pregnancy (MedlinePlus), or comes with blurred vision or dizziness (CDC).

  • Normal

    puffy ankles at the end of the day; swollen hands and feet are on the NHS's list for these weeks (NHS).

    Call your provider right away

    for extreme swelling of your hands or face, or any change in your vision (CDC).

For you

It's easy to talk yourself out of calling about pain, especially when you've been told for weeks that aches are normal. Most of them are. The NHS names this one specifically because it's the exception (NHS). A call that turns out to be a foot costs you ten minutes.

If you're the partner: if she mentions rib pain twice in an evening, ask which kind it is.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

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